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Farmstead searched in case of murdered pregnant woman

Fargo police say two people will be charged with murder and kidnapping Monday afternoon, after they confirmed a body pulled from the Red River is the 22-year-old woman who was eight months pregnant when she went missing last week.

FARGO, N.D. - Fargo police say two people will be charged with murder and kidnapping Monday afternoon, after they confirmed a body pulled from the Red River is the 22-year-old woman who was eight months pregnant when she went missing last week.

Cass County State's Attorney Birch Burdick says 38-year-old Brooke Crews and 32-year-old William Hoehn are scheduled to appear in court Monday afternoon to be formally charged with conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit kidnapping and giving false information. They will have bond set but won't enter pleas. There are no other suspects.

The two were neighbors of Savanna Greywind, who went missing Aug. 19. Authorities recovered her body from the Red River in Fargo Sunday night, three days after finding a newborn they believe to be hers. The baby was with Crews when she was arrested.

At a news conference Monday morning Chief David Todd said investigators from the Clay County, MN Sheriff's Department and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension are now processing what appears to be a crime scene at an abandoned farmstead that may be connected to the death of Greywind.

Investigators say the scene was discovered by citizen searchers, who immediately notified sheriff's officials in Clay County. Fargo Police say they did not believe they would have been led to the scene through investigative channels, and credited those who volunteered to look for Greywind.

Police have been searching for Savanna since she disappeared Aug. 19. Fargo Police Chief David Todd said Sunday night that Greywind was pulled out of the Red River, just outside of Moorhead, at about 8:20 p.m. Two recreational kayakers had come upon her body, which was wrapped in plastic and secured with duct tape. She was caught on a branch or tree limb that was under water.

"Savanna was a victim of a cruel and vicious act of depravity," said Chief Todd at the briefing. "Our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of this young lady."

Greywind's body was taken to the Ramsey County Medical Examiner for an autopsy. Police said her family has been notified.

The farmstead being searched and processed is in Minnesota, meaning investigators from Fargo Police, Clay County and the MN BCA are working together on the case. The charges filed in Cass County, ND Monday afternoon will be conspiracy to commit murder. If it is found that Greywind was killed in Minnesota, actual murder charges will likely be filed there.

RELATED: Search for woman intensifies after newborn found

The recovery of Savanna Greywind's body is just the latest development in a saga that has transfixed the river community. On Thursday, a newborn baby was found in the apartment building where Greywind was last seen. Hoehn and Crews, neighbors of Greywind's, indicated to police that the infant was Greywind's, but would not answer questions about Greywind's whereabouts. They were both arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping, a class A felony, according to Fargo police. Those charges will now include conspiracy to commit murder and giving false information to police.

Fargo police say 38-year-old Brooke Crews (L) and 32-year-old William Hoehn (R) have been charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping, a class A felony.

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